Sliding-door track and cap.



M. H. McNAMARA.

SLIDING DOOR TRACK AND GAP.

APPLICATION FILED 00123, 1911.

1,023,950, Patented Apr. 23, 1912.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE,

MICHAEL HENRY MGNAMARA, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

SLIDING-DOOR TRACK AND GAP.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, MICHAEL H. MONA- MARA, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Sliding-Door Tracks and Caps, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in the means for movably supporting the upper portion of sliding doors, and while it is applicable for use in connection with sliding doors employed for various purposes, yet it is more particularly intended for the sliding doors of freight cars, and it consists in certain peculiarities of the construct-ion, novel arrangement, and operation of the parts thereof, as will be hereinafter more fully set forth and specifically claimed.

The principal object of the invention, is to provide simple and eflicient means for supporting and guiding the upper end of a sliding door, which means may be supported above the doorway, which the door is designed to close, and shall be of such construction as to afford a hooded or housed track on which the rollers carried by the door may travel, thus preventing the accu mulation of cinders, dust, dirt, or other particles on the track, to impede the movement of said rollers.

A further object of the invention is to provide a track and cap for sliding doors, or a hooded or housed track which shall be simple and inexpensive in construction, strong, durable, and efiicient in operation, and which may be readily secured to the surface of a car, or other structure, above the doorway therein, or readily removed therefrom.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be disclosed in the subjoined description and explanation.

In order to enable others skilled in the art to which the invention pertains, to make and use the same I will now proceed to describe it referring to the accompanying drawing in which Figure 1, is a side view of a portion of the wall of a structure, having a doorway therein, which structure in the present instance is shown as being a portion of a car, illustrating a track and cap for a sliding door, which door is shown as being mounted thereon and as being open. Fig. 2, is a plan sectional View taken on line 22,

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application fi1ed October 23, 1911.

Patented Apr. 23, 1912.

Serial No. 656,309.

of Fig. 3, Fig. 3, is a vertical sectional view taken on line 33, of Fig. 2, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows, and Fig. 4:, is a face view of a portion of the material out of which the hooded track is formed.

Like numerals of reference refer to cor responding parts throughout the different views of the drawing.

The reference numeral 5, designates the upright wall of a structure, which has a doorway 6, therein, and in the present instance the wall of the structure is shown as being a portion of the side of a box or freight car, but it will be understood that that it may be a portion of a wall of a building or orther structure. Horizontally mounted on the wall 5, and secured thereto by means of bolts 7, spikes or nails, is a combined track and cap, or hooded track, for the sliding door 8, which may be of the ordinary or any preferred construction and of a suitable size to close the doorway 6, in the side or wall of the structure on which it is used.

The combined track and cap is indicated as a whole by the reference numeral 9, and consists of a single piece of metal formed to provide a longitudinally and horizontally extended track or base 10, on which the rollers 11, carried by the door 8, may travel. The track or base 10, of the device has at one of its edges a downwardly extended flange 12, which may be secured to the wall 5, of the structure, by means of bolts 7, or otherwise, and the opposite edge of the base or track 10, is provided with a vertically extended portion 13, from the upper part of'which is extended an inclined part 14, which terminates in a flange 15, which is extended in parallelism and in the same plane with the flange 12, and may also be secured to the wall or support 5, by means of bolts 7, passed through suitable openings in said flanges. The base or track 10, is provided with a longitudinally disposed slot 16, which is preferably located near the vertical portion 13, of the hood or cap and extends from near one end of the track and cap to near the other end thereof. Extended through the slot 16, are the downwardly depending shanks 17, of a plurality of hangers 18, the upper portion of each of which is shaped to form three sides of a rectangular figure, and each has journaled between its parallel portions a roller 11,

which rollers will rest on the upper surface of the track or base 10, as is clearly shown in Fig. 3, of the drawing. Each of the shanks 17, of the hangers 18, may be secured to the upper portion of the door 8, by means of screws, bolts, or nails 19, thus suspending the door 8, on said hangers in such a manner that the door may be easily moved on the track so as to open or close the door.

In using my newly invented track and cap, or hooded track, it is evident that the shanks 17, of the hangers 18, on which the rollers 11, are journaled, may be extended through the slot 16, and secured to the door 8, before the track and cap is placed in position and secured to the support or wall 5, or if desired, the track and cap may first be secured to the wall or support 5, after which the shanks 17, of the hangers 18, may be passed through the slot 16, and fastened to the upper portion of the door.

By employing a hooded track embodying my invention, which device is preferably made of steel of sufficient thickness and dimensions as to render it very strong and durable, it is evident that a smooth track or surface will be provided for the travel of the rollers 11, carried by the door, and that as the track is covered or shielded by the housing consisting of the vertical portion 18, and upwardly inclined part 14:, dust, cinders, and other particles will be prevented accumulating on the track in such quantities as to impede the travel of the rollers, and besides, on account of its novel and peculiar construction, the hooded track will not likely be bentor injured by machinery or articles striking the same, and thereby causing the door to be thrown out of plumb or deleteriously affected in its movements. Each end of the hooded track is closed by means of a tab or extension 20, which is bent inwardly from the portion 13, between the parts 14:, and 16, so that the free edge of the extension 20, will rest closely against the wall 5, or support.

Having thus fully described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters-Patent is- A hooded track for sliding doors consisting of a horizontally disposed portion having at one of its edges a downwardly eX- tended and an apertured flange and provided near its other edge with a longitudinally disposed slot terminating at its ends inwardly of the ends of said portion and at the last named edge with a vertically extended portion, and an upwardly inclined portion extended from the upper portion of the vertical part and having at its free edge an apertured flange extended upwardly in parallelism with the first named flange.

MICHAEL HENRY MCNAMARA.

Witnesses:

MARIE MCNAMARA, RUTH MCNAMARA.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. C. 

